


Troublesome Magic

by loknnica



Category: Naruto, shikatema - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - Harry Potter Setting, Alternate Universe - Hogwarts, Attempt at Humor, Eventual Relationships, Eventual Romance, F/M, Friendship, Gen, Romance, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-22
Updated: 2020-03-30
Packaged: 2021-02-28 11:40:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,151
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22849558
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/loknnica/pseuds/loknnica
Summary: All Shikamaru wanted was to be ordinary. Unfortunately for him, life had other plans. As the captain of the Quidditch team, his final year at Hogwarts will be more troublesome than ever before.
Relationships: Hyuuga Hinata/Uzumaki Naruto, Inuzuka Kiba/Yamanaka Ino, Nara Shikamaru/Temari
Comments: 62
Kudos: 87





	1. Prologue

_**Prologue** _

Shikamaru Nara stood amongst a crowd gathered in the most amazing room he had ever seen. Not that he’ll ever admit it, but he was impressed. He couldn’t help but stare at the ceiling that had taken a very real illusion of a starry night’s sky. He’d never seen anything quite like it before. The stars looked breathtaking, but he was more captivated by the clouds floating around amongst them. If only he could have been as ordinary as a cloud.

But he wasn’t. He stood there, about to begin a new chapter of his life in Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. He could sense everyone’s excitement. Even though people thought of him as ‘unlikely to give a damn’ there was a flicker of nervousness inside him.

The whispers of kids around him had dialed down as a woman, who had introduced herself as ‘Mrs. Yuhi’ earlier, stepped to the podium next to an old wooden chair with the Sorting Hat on it.

The woman studied a piece of paper carefully, before calling out the first name.

“Akimichi Chouji.”

His childhood friend. Shikamaru had hoped that they would get sorted into the same house. Ino as well. But it was highly unlikely. If he’s lucky he might be in the same house as Ino. Then again, that would be an absolute nightmare if Chouji wasn’t around. Shikamaru shrugged and focused on the Sorting Hat’s speech, but it was already done.

“Hufflepuff,” it announced loudly, and a crowd from the house’s long table cheered as they welcomed their newest addition.

He had predicted this outcome. His eyes followed his friend, until he found his seat. His stomach twisted uneasily at the thought that they might grow apart. And judging by the look on his friend’s face, Chouji felt the same way. There was not even a slight glimmer of hope that they’d end up in the same house. Naras were Ravenclaws. They have always been Ravenclaws.

Shikamaru turned back to watch a pink-haired girl take the hot seat next. Sakura Haruno, who the Hat deemed fit for Gryffindor. It must be so exciting for all kids to sit on that chair not knowing which house they’d get, hoping for one over the other. Shikamaru felt no such excitement.

After her, a black-haired boy took the chair. The Sorting Hat had barely touched a single hair on his head before sending him to Slytherin.

Next came a shy little girl. She was quite flustered, and very petite. He knew very well who she was. Hinata Hyuuga. The heiress to one of the two most prestigious families. Her appearance may have suited the family’s trademarks, but her attitude was far from it. He had chatted with her on the train ride. She wasn’t uptight nor did she seem like someone who cared about pure blood. She was simply afraid. Her pale eyes were focused somewhere behind Shikamaru. For the first time, his guess was incorrect. Hyuugas get sorted in Slytherin. Worse comes to worst Ravenclaw. Hinata was Hufflepuff.

The girl had a horrified look upon her face, as if she’d seen a ghost – which, apparently, was not unlikely at this school. Alas, that wasn’t the case. Shikamaru remembered his father’s horror stories about the Hyuuga family. The girl would be considered an embarrassment. He observed her move slowly and take a seat next to Chouji who happily extended his hand and acquainted himself. It seemed to cheer her up a little.

Next came Hinata’s cousin. He’d seen the boy on the train, chaperoning her every move, but he did not engage in conversation with them. The Hat began the monologue, and Shikamaru would have listened, had it not been for two obnoxiously chatty boys behind him, arguing about which one of them is more likely to get sorted into Gryffindor. The conversation itself was absurd, but curiosity took over him and Shikamaru turned around to get a glimpse of the troublesome boys.

One had red fangs drawn on his cheeks. _He must be an Inuzuka_ , he thought. A family known for being extremely skilled animagi that took shape of dogs or wolves. The stories he’d heard say that Inuzuka children learn transfiguration at a very young age, as a part of tradition.

The other boy had hair as bright as the sun and a big goofy grin on his face. No recognizable family traits. He seemed like a typical loudmouth class clown. Something about his confidence spoke to Shikamaru, and he couldn’t quite understand what or why, yet he felt oddly drawn to this boy. He smirked softly, almost wishing to get to know this person better.

Shikamaru faced the podium again, and saw a girl with two buns step down and head toward the table under the blue banner. Ravenclaw.

“Ino Yamanaka,” Mrs. Yuhi called and Shikamaru followed the motion his friend made towards the chair.

She sat there, her back up right, chin parallel to the floor, with a look in her eyes as fierce and proud as always. After a brief monologue about the Yamanaka family’s traditions, the Hat sorted Ino into Slytherin. Shikamaru was half disappointed and half relieved. He didn’t want to have to deal with Ino without Chouji’s help, and there was no way he’d end up in Slytherin with his lack of ambition. However, it would have been nice to have an old friend as a housemate. 

“Shikamaru Nara,” he froze for a moment after hearing his name being called out by Mrs. Yuhi.

This is it. The moment he had dreaded.

Shikamaru stepped forward lazily, his eyes upon the small wooden stool in front of him.

He could already hear the teachers whisper things like ‘ _This is Shikaku Nara’s boy,’_ and ‘ _His father is a famous auror,’_ and all he could think about was that he did not want to be compared to his father. He loved and admired the man, but that’s a few too many expectations he’d have to live up to, when all he ever wanted was to have an ordinary life, watching the clouds as they go by.

Step by step, he’d reached the destination, made a full body turn to face his peers in the Great hall, and sat down. The chair creaked beneath his weight. The seat was warm from the other kids who’d taken it before him.

“Ah, what have we here, another Nara,” he was startled by a deep voice that interrupted his daydream of all things ordinary. “I see a genius in the making with the potential to surpass even his own father. I know just the place for you...”

Shikamaru sighed heavily, not even trying to hide his exasperation. _What a drag._ He thought.

“Interesting. Very interesting indeed,” the voice kept talking. Shikamaru was slightly confused at the change of tone. Things are not going as he expected them to. “The child who does not want to be defined by a family name and judged by his wit. You are more like your father than you think, boy.”

His heart started to pound so hard he thought it would rip through his chest and bounce through the room. Shikamaru shut his eyes forcibly. He must have looked like a fool clenching his hands to the seat of the chair like that.

“Gryffindor.”


	2. Six Years Later

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jump to present, Shikamaru starts his final year at Hogwarts with his friends.

**_Chapter One – Six Years Later_ **

He sat next to the window and stared up at the clear blue sky. Not a cloud in sight. The valley had seemed greener than usual. At this time of the year it typically already had a yellowish shade. 

Maybe he could try to take a nap once they enter the tunnel and the lights are out. The tunnel is fairly long, and he can fall asleep easily. It seemed like a perfectly wonderful plan. His eyelids felt heavy and he didn’t quite put up a fight to keep his eyes open. The serene silence was interrupted by the cabin door being slammed open.

“Wake up party breaker, we got snacks,” two classmates, subtly as usual, entered and seated themselves across from Shikamaru. 

“For fuck’s sake mate, do you have to be so damn loud all the time?” he eyed the blonde who took a seat right across from him. 

“Yes. Yes, I do,” Naruto replied with a serious face, “if I weren’t loud, you’d be asleep all the time.”

“That’s _exactly_ my point.” He hadn’t meant for it to, but his voice sounded threatening. His face helped convey the tone as well. Unfortunately, his friends tended to ignore his brooding more often than not. 

“C’mon man, this is our last year of school! Where’s your spirit?” Kiba asked.

“My spirit is taking a nap, and I’d like to join it,” he frowned, but didn’t hesitate to reach out and grab a chocolate bar that Naruto was just about to devour. The blonde stared judgingly as Shikamaru munched on the snack as slowly as possible in efforts to piss him off.

“You can nap when you’re dead. We have more pressing matters to deal with now.” Inuzuka bit into his own candy bar and started chewing. Loudly, of course.

“Yeah, like the fact that _we_ have to find a new Beater for our house’s Quidditch team,” Naruto complained. “He broke his arm just last week; he’s out for the whole season.” 

It’s been six years and Shikamaru still can’t believe he’s actually in the sports team. Turns out, he’s really good at it. Who would have guessed? Not him, that’s for sure. His mother was extremely proud when he’d announced he made the team on his second year, along with Kiba and Naruto who was somehow magically on the team during the first year already. What the hell was he even thinking?

“Um, I was gonna say that some girls from our class are starting to look damn fine and we should make a move, but ok,” Kiba said with a mouthful. 

“I see everyone’s priorities are still intact.” Shikamaru commented while his two hot-headed housemates bickered.

Naruto turned his head to face Kiba. “Can you stop thinking about girls for _one_ second?”

“You should _start_ thinking about girls again. Ever since Haruno shut you down two years ago, you've been a bit _too_ indifferent,” Kiba emphasized the word strongly. “I’m starting to worry, ya know.”

“Why is this still a thing? Can we not bring it up every time? I was a dumb kid, I have no interest in her whatsoever.”

Kiba threw his head back in laughter and Shikamaru snorted a little. He knew it to be true, Naruto seemed to have truly lost the interest for a certain pink-haired housemate, but the way he got so embarrassed about the fact that it existed in the first place was hilarious.

True to his lazy nature, Shikamaru had hoped to get some sleep during the ride. But it wouldn’t be his life if his ordinary plans didn’t get ruined by his troublesome friends. And as always, he was quick to make an exception for them and follow them into every stupid stunt they’ve ever pulled. Starting from their first transfiguration class when he’d ended up riding on wolf Kiba’s back, all the way up to last year’s end-of-school party debacle when Naruto spiked the punch, and a Slytherin girl attempted giving him a lap dance moments before the teachers walked in.

Yes, his friends may be borderline ridiculous, but they _are_ friends after all.

The trip to the school didn’t take long, as per usual. They somehow always managed to help make the time fly by, spending the trip reminiscing of the _good old times_ , enjoying the tasty snacks, and planning some future endeavors. Before they knew it, they were sitting in the Great hall, waiting for dinner.

They were always one of the first ones to get there, in efforts to avoid the crowd and getting flooded by students rushing in. The trio took their usual seats – Shikamaru sat on the side of the table that faced the main passageway, and Kiba and Naruto took their seats across the table from him.

Amongst the crowd Shikamaru spotted a familiar pink mane eagerly approaching them. Sakura was the only girl in their crew. He assumed it’s because she’s the one girl in Gryffindor that Kiba hadn’t tried to snog and ditch. He likes his balls far too much to dare make such a move on her. She always spends the train rides with girl friends from Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff, absorbing all the estrogen she can get before spending most of the year with boys, in her own words.

“I’m freakin’ starving, _ugh_ ,” Sakura groaned as she dropped into the seat next to Shikamaru with a loud thud. “I wish we didn’t have to wait for first-years to get sorted in order to eat.”

“It’s the same drill every time,” Kiba said, flashing her a winning smile. “That’s why I bring snacks,” he presented her a bag of chips, and she eyed it with pure desire.

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d mistake you for Chouji,” Shikamaru said.

Naruto was about to add to the humor, but the attempt at conversation was interrupted by another one of Sakura’s loud groans that almost startled Shikamaru. He turned around to face the source of her frustration, and his eyes met the Slytherin trio. He smiled and waved to a tall blonde, who returned the gesture. The two guys with her didn’t even seem to notice their presence at all. The trio continued on, and the sea of students parted to allow them to pass, a look of fear plastered on each of their faces.

“How does _Ino_ get a guy like _Sasuke_?” Sakura complained, and let her frustration out by pushing Shikamaru a little too hard, prompting him to almost fall off the bench. Almost.

“The real question here is how does a dude like Sasuke get a babe like Ino.”

All eyes turned to Kiba, and Shikamaru could swear he’d never hear from him again after Sakura gets her hands on him. Surprisingly, the girl had no violent reaction.

“What? She’s hot,” he shrugged.

Shikamaru certainly didn’t think of her that way, the sheer thought of it was revolting. For him, she was always simply… _Ino_. 

“Yeah, and he’s like, the most popular guy in school.” Naruto added, staring at the dark-haired Uchiha’s back.

“Why are you even assuming that they are together?” Shikamaru asked nonchalantly, and judging by the looks he got in response, it was probably a stupid question. He’s not used to being on the receiving end of them.

“Please,” Naruto said, “it’s obvious she’s all over him.”

“So? He doesn’t seem to care at all,” said Shikamaru.

Sakura paused to stare at him, before her face lit up just as fast as her hand collided with his shoulder, damn near pushing him over. “ _Thank you_! That’s what _I_ was saying!” Her face then equally as abruptly transitioned to a scowl, before unleashing a rant about how _certain_ she was that Sasuke had feelings for _her_ instead.

He didn’t mean to encourage her pursuit of the guy; hell, he merely observed the obvious. But Sakura took it as an invitation anyway to detail every ‘sign’ Sasuke had given her over the years displaying his indisputable attraction for her. None of which made sense.

Why the hell were girls so obsessed with clues and signs? Wouldn’t a guy just _tell_ a girl he likes her? Why did everything have to have a hidden meaning? He never understood overanalyzing the simplest things, but Sakura did that. A lot.

Shikamaru wondered if any girl he knew was ever trying this hard to analyze him.

“Whoa, is that Hinata?” Naruto’s voice interrupted his thoughts, and Shikamaru glanced over at her, strolling with her childhood best friend.

“Yeah,” Sakura said.

Naruto stared at the girl with lush indigo hair without so much as blinking or uttering a word. And Shikamaru recognized the longing gaze, having seen it before. The idiot was far too obvious. Sakura seemed far too happy about the fact. Inuzuka didn’t quite share the same joy.

“Don’t you even dare,” Kiba’s hoarse voice was threatening, and Shikamaru could pinpoint the exact moment Naruto’s balls shrunk, judging from his pale facial expression. He hadn’t even realized that he was staring.

“What are you even suggesting? I just didn’t recognize her because she looks so- her hair is much longer,” Naruto said awkwardly and Shikamaru barely managed not to laugh at the pathetic attempt of an excuse.

“Yeah, right,” Kiba narrowed his eyes at the blonde with suspicion. “I’m watching you.”

Though they weren’t blood related, Kiba was protective of Hinata. His family took her in after her own shamed her for getting sorted into the ‘wrong’ house. The Hyuugas were…specific. And Inuzukas were a pack, and left no pup behind. Shikamaru understood the connection. Chouji and Ino weren’t his siblings, and over the years their relationship drifted a bit apart, but they were still a family. If push came to shove, he’d give his life for either one of them in a heartbeat.

“I really didn’t mean it like that Kiba,” Naruto said defensively, slowly sliding away from Kiba’s reach.

“You do know she’s been in love with you since the sorting ceremony first year, right?” Sakura interrupted casually, finally managing to grab some chips from Kiba.

“What?!” Naruto squeaked in a high-pitched voice which prompted Shikamaru to snort out the juice he had just taken a sip of.

“Oh good lord,” Shikamaru exhaled loudly.

“Seriously dude, how could you not notice?” Inuzuka asked. “She’s always staring at you.”

“I guess I- wait,” he turned to face Kiba and squinted, “ _you knew_?”

“Naruto, _pigeons_ knew.” Shikamaru finally cut in and Kiba nodded in agreement. Sakura followed with the same reaction.

“Damn… I guess I was too preoccupied with Quidditch,” Naruto said, still gazing wistfully at the shy girl who was now seated at the Hufflepuff table.

“No shit.”

“Look, I’m not _fond_ of the situation, but yes, it’s true that she likes you,” Kiba frowned, “ _however_ , don’t get any ideas! You can only act on it if you’re going to marry her. Otherwise – I’ll _Avada Kedavra_ you.”

“Speaking of Quidditch,” Sakura said a little too loudly in efforts to change the topic before Naruto said something stupid that might prompt Kiba to act on his threat. “What are we going to do about the beater situation?” she asked.

Before anyone could even think of a reply, the headmistress had stepped onto the podium and the Great hall went silent, all eyes on the woman before them.

She did not look a day over thirty, but rumor has it that she’s in fact a hundred and thirty. He knew the stories to be false, because his father had informed him that she was actually about sixty years old. Still, she certainly didn’t look like it. Apparently, she was said to be one of the three legendary magicians of the century.

“Good evening all,” she spoke loudly. “It is with great pleasure that I welcome you back to another year at Hogwarts. First of all, allow me to introduce our new Care of magical beasts teacher, Tsume Inuzuka.”

A round of applause was heard in the hall as the woman with red fangs on her cheeks stood up and nodded.

“Dude, your mom will be a teacher here, this is so weird.” Naruto whispered, and Kiba made a grimace.

“More so for me than the rest of you.”

“I think she’s brilliant,” Sakura said quietly.

Shikamaru shrugged. “Tough luck buddy.” He did not want to be in Kiba’s shoes, Tsume was one scary woman. He didn’t want to even begin to imagine what it would be like if his own mother were to be a teacher at his school. He would have probably dropped out and moved to the opposite side of the world.

“Before we proceed with the usual, I have another announcement to make,” Tsunade’s voice rose above the applause. “I’m happy to announce that this year, our school will be competing in an inter-school Quidditch tournament. We will be facing opponents from Durmstrang, Beauxbatons and other schools of magic from all over the world.”

“Oh, I’m so in for this,” Naruto grinned. Kiba and Sakura shushed him, focused on listening to the headmistress.

“I’ll leave the detailed explanation to your Flying teacher, but all of that can wait. I’m sure everyone is quite tired now, I’ll leave it to professor Yuhi to introduce the first years.”

As soon as Tsunade took her seat at the teachers’ table again, the big door of the Great Hall opened, and entered professor Yuhi, followed by a pack of children whose faces were lit with wonder as they strolled through the passageway and observed the magical ceiling decorated with thousands of floating candles.

Shikamaru always remembered their first day at Hogwarts during the sorting ceremonies. He had expected to be a Ravenclaw and boy, his life would have been much easier if that turned out to be the case.

“I remember _our_ first day,” Sakura said with a nostalgic tone, and everyone allowed their lips to quirk up.

“Me too. I was a little surprised that Shikamaru ended up here, I didn’t peg him for a Gryffindor,” Kiba said.

“I was as shocked as you my man. My mother was thrilled though, she was a Gryffindor too,” Shikamaru said, remembering his mother’s letter that he’d received after the sorting ceremony. The words he had read echoed with pride. He had been worried about what his father would say, as the letter had no mention of him. After going home for the first time that year, he finally saw his father, the famous auror of the Ino-Shika-Cho team. He’d simply smiled at him and patted his back. It was only then that he had stopped worrying about getting sorted in Gryffindor. Not that it made the whole experience any less exhausting.

“Wait, I thought Naras were always Ravenclaws?” Naruto asked, interrupting his reminiscing.

“You do realize that my mother was not a Nara as a child?” Shikamaru asked so matter-of-factly that Naruto’s face turned red from the embarrassment of his own question.

“Speaking of your mom,” Kiba started with a mischievous grin and the looks on everyone’s faces turned to horror, “Oh god. You thought I was gonna say a dirty mom joke, did you?”

Shikamaru let out a sigh of relief, Naruto followed and Sakura laughed nervously.

“For heaven’s sake, I wanted to ask if we are doing our annual visit for Christmas and if she’ll be making her famous pudding?”

“We literally _just_ got here, and you’re worried about Christmas pudding?” Sakura said.

“I am what I am,” he shrugged and the motion was followed by a loud applause from the Gryffindor house.

It seemed as though they’ve gained a new member – A brown-haired kid with a foolish grin on his face had joined their table. They joined in on the applause, and Naruto waved cheerfully at the kid, who seemed positively ecstatic to join their house.

The sorting ceremony was over before they knew it. Tsunade took the stage again, to make another speech to welcome the children. At the end of it, she clapped her hands and the luscious dinner appeared on the table out of thin air. It was the same every year, and it never disappointed. As per usual, there was roast beef, roast chicken, pork chops and lamb chops, sausages, bacon and steak, and many, many other dishes that they’ve been spoiled with at Hogwarts. 

All worries were forgotten for a brief moment.

Shikamaru hadn’t realized it, but his stomach had been howling. It dawned on him just how hungry he really was at the scent of the plate of meals in front of him. Sakura was already on her second portion before he even managed to add food to _his_ plate.

“Dude,” Kiba leaned in and whispered, “She’s staring at you again.”

“Who is?” Shikamaru didn’t really care, it was an automatic response he’d blurted out.

“Your ex. Hi Shiho!” Naruto helpfully hinted, waving at the girl sitting behind Shikamaru at the Ravenclaw table.

“Stop it,” Shikamaru hissed.

“Why are you guys teasing him, Shiho is so nice, plus she’s very cute,” Sakura said, turning around to wave at the thin blonde girl with glasses.

“Cute…” Kiba agreed, “but _weird_.”

“But cute,” Sakura insisted.

“But weird,” all three men replied in unison, and she frowned.

“Why were you with her then?” Sakura crossed her hands and stared at him with that demanding look on her face that he hated. It was bad enough Ino did it.

“She – she wasn’t like that at first,” he replied anyway.

“Really? _That’s_ your answer?”

The truth is, he didn’t really have an answer. Everybody was dating. She was there. She liked him. It was easy. None of it seemed like an appropriate answer. In theory, he knew that Shiho is everything he always wanted. Plain. Simple. Easy. Yet being with her didn’t feel as right. He barely felt anything at all. Physical stuff was nice, but there was no connection. Funnily enough, he never thought of himself as someone who needed a connection in the first place.

“Can we get back to our Quidditch problem?” Naruto suggested after Shikamaru hadn’t elaborated further. He ought to thank him later for the save. Otherwise he probably would have said something monumentally stupid and be on the receiving end of another punch to the shoulder by a certain someone.

The Quidditch discussion turned out to be an even more troublesome topic than their previous one. Everybody had unique suggestions to their game plan, all of which made some amount of sense, but he was left without a clue on which approach he would take. As the team captain, the final decision would be Shikamaru’s. Finding a good Beater for the team will be a bigger pain in the ass than he’d anticipated.

He needed a good night of sleep to let things settle. He needed to clear his head, and figure out the next logical move. As soon as his head hit the pillow in their dormitory, Shikamaru was fast asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed reading! Shoutout to my beta TJ for helping me a lot with this chapter.


	3. The Tryouts

**_Chapter Two – The Tryouts_ **

He would have liked to get some decent sleep the night before the first Quidditch practice of the year. It had already been delayed twice due to horrible weather conditions, and the panic his teammates felt about their lack of a decent beater had spread and gotten to him, too. The tryouts would be such a drag. He went to bed early, but as luck would have it, he was woken up in the middle of the night by Naruto’s screams.

“Where do yo—shhhhh,” Kiba hissed, quickly covering the blonde’s mouth. “Stop screaming, it’s just me. Where do you keep your condoms?”

Shikamaru was trying to gather his wits, and convince himself that the scene before him was just a dream. It wasn’t.

“I don’t keep my condoms anywhere, because I don’t have them,” Naruto yelled at Kiba who had been kneeling next to Naruto’s bed, digging around his nightstand. “I don’t have them, because I don’t have a girlfriend! And you _know_ this, yet you assume that I have bloody condoms and wake me up in the middle of the night just for me to tell you the things that you already know!”

“Bloody hell Naruto would you stop yelling! He’s obviously drunk,” Shikamaru shook his head and followed the motion with a heavy sigh falling from his lips, and then looking up at the ceiling. Idiots. Absolute fucking idiots his friends were.

“Ok, first of all,” Kiba said, with his red eyes staring at Shikamaru, “I _am_ drunk. Second of all, there’s a hot chick waiting for me downstairs in the common room, so will somebody please give me the damn condoms?”

Naruto threw himself back into his sheets and let out a long, loud groan.

“You know, I blame the sorting hat for this,” Shikamaru said as he stood up and walked across the room to open his closet, oddly calm.

“For Kiba’s sex life?” Naruto asked, half confused at the statement.

“For sorting me into this nightmare of a house. My life has been ruined ever since.”

“Is your life really ruined, though?” Kiba’s voice was awfully squeaky. Shikamaru didn’t say anything. After rummaging around his sock drawer, he pulled out a small blue pack and tossed it over to Kiba who, against all odds, caught it.

“Ravenclaws have sex too, you know? Trust me, I’ve participated,” Kiba stood up and grinned wickedly.

“You’re a lost cause, Inuzuka,” Shikamaru scoffed, and his lip curved into a smirk as he walked back to his bed. Had he been sorted into Ravenclaw instead, god knows what his life would have been like. He would probably be as unlucky to _still_ have his sleep disrupted by Kiba’s sex life.

His head hit the pillow, and he lay awake wondering when the hell did his life get this troublesome. He loved his friends, god help him he did, but they were a pain in his ass sometimes.

* * *

After his plan to have a good night of sleep had failed, Shikamaru was grateful that at the very least, the weather was nice for the Quidditch tryouts. It felt soothing to stare at the clouds as they stretched across the blue of the sky while he waited for everyone to gather around. He enjoyed the fact that it was only seven in the morning far less, but after six years he’d grown used to it. In fact, he was startled by how quite unbothered he was about waking up early nowadays. It used to be a drag, but soon became a daily routine.

His roommates arrived along with him, both unusually—and pleasantly—quiet. Naruto was still half asleep, and Kiba was too hungover to bother even dressing up properly; he’d almost left the room with nothing but a t-shirt and boxers on backwards.

Sakura arrived at seven sharp, while everyone who was supposed to do tryouts for the team were asked to join them at seven fifteen.

“Honestly guys, you look godawful,” Sakura said, a little too loudly, and Kiba cringed harshly as if his braincells were detonating.

“Serves you right,” Naruto laughed at Kiba. He seemed to be regaining some of his energy, Shikamaru judged. That usually meant that he’d try to make them do activities. Luckily for Shikamaru it was the tryouts, and he was already forced to be active.

“Seriously Kiba, you could’ve got caught,” she said, her eyes stubbornly glued to his, arms crossed at her chest.

“I’m of legal age and I was drinking at Hogsmeade, away from school. See, I’m careful,” he put on a dumb grin on his face and Sakura just shook her head and rolled her eyes at him.

“And then you had obnoxiously loud sex with someone in our common room,” Shikamaru added casually, staring at the clouds and Sakura’s mouth fell open.

“You heard?” Kiba turned to face him, and Shikamaru slowly cocked his head to face him, locking into an unsettling stare, then let his left eyebrow arch high up.

“Are you kidding me? She was practically screaming, I’m honestly afraid to ask what the hell did you do to her,” he explained. Naruto shook jerked his head as if trying to repress a horribly vivid memory and Sakura was still mute from the shock. Kiba went back to his arrogant self and put on a mischievous grin on his face.

“I’ll tell you later,” he said.

“Please don’t. Just for god’s sake, use a sound isolating charm next time, will you?”

“Ok, shut up, people are arriving,” Naruto interrupted, and Shikamaru turned around to see a group of Gryffindors carrying brooms approach them for the tryouts. Suddenly, Naruto and Kiba seemed much more energized and eager to stay awake.

Amongst the peers, Shikamaru spotted a taller figure, their flying teacher, Mr. Gai, who had seemed to stop the crowd.

“No, no, no, what is he doing?” Kiba barked.

“Is he- is he sending everyone away?” Sakura asked.

Truth to be told, Shikamaru had already predicted this. He just didn’t have the heart to tell it to his teammates. He watched Naruto sprint towards Gai and throw all sorts of objections his way to the idea of sending away potential future players. Gai simply threw his arm around Naruto’s shoulders and led him back towards the rest of the group.

“That’s bollocks!” Naruto said, and everyone froze and stared at him wide-eyed. Gai jerked his head in surprise, and Naruto instinctively covered his mouth. “Sir, I’m so sorry,” he insisted, “I didn’t mean to curse, it’s just, what you said is just so—“

“I know what you meant dear Naruto, but alas, things are as they are. I feel your desire to prove yourself very deeply. A true Gryffindor!”

“Mr. Gai, what happened over there?” Sakura asked, about as nicely as she could muster. “Why did you send away our tryout candidates?” Shikamaru knew she was barely holding it together herself.

Mr. Gai took a look at the four of them, finally landing his eyes on Shikamaru, “You know, don’t you, Nara?”

“I have a guess,” Shikamaru said dully, and the teacher smirked.

“You are too modest, my boy” he smirked. “Well, allow me to confirm Mr. Nara’s _guess_. There won’t be any need for the individual house tryouts this year and believe me kids, I’m even more disappointed than you.”

“But we only have half a team! How can we compete to represent the school with only half a team?” Kiba barked loudly, to the point where Shikamaru could see Inuzuka’s hangover react to the volume of his own voice.

“No one house will represent the school. Hogwarts will be represented by a mix of students from each house.”

“That’s b—”

“Bollocks?” Mr. Gai finished for Kiba, who seemed slightly embarrassed for the slip, but the teacher flashed them a huge smile.

After Gai had turned his attention to Naruto, Kiba leaned in towards Shikamaru and whispered “Actually, I was going to say ‘bullshit’,” and Shikamaru couldn’t help but choke back the laugh.

“I can see your frustration young man,” Gai went on enthusiastically, a little too enthusiastically if you asked Shikamaru, “and I admire the competitive spirit, but this is in the best interest of our school. While yes, Gryffindor does have an excellent team, it would be even better to combine the strengths of each house to form one unique team that’s going to give our opponents _hell_!”

“I don’t want to mix with Slytherins,” Kiba mumbled.

“Quite interesting, that’s a very Slytherin thing to say,” Gai winked and then turned his attention back to Shikamaru. “Now, Mr. Nara, were you right on the money with your guess.”

“Yes.”

“I thought so,” Gai said cheerfully and patted him on the back, his heavy hand landing right between Shikamaru’s shoulder blades, leaving him a little breathless which prompted a cough. “Now, if you’ll please accompany me back to the castle, the results of our finalized school team will be made public today at noon.”

“ _Today_?! _At noon_? We don’t even get to try for positions?” Sakura was the one who protested this time, and Kiba just seemed glad that he wasn’t the only one making a fool of himself for rebelling. “That’s so unfair!”

“My, I love you Gryffindors and your feisty spirit! There is no time for such things, unfortunately. It may seem unfair, but you forget that I’ve been observing all the teams for a long time now, and I deem myself fit to decide fairly, wouldn’t you agree, Miss Haruno?”

When Sakura gave no reply, Mr. Gai went on.

“We need to start practicing as a unified team, to get everyone coordinated. After all, our guests arrive in only two weeks from now, and I’m pretty sure their teams are already well synchronized.”

“Which is exactly _why_ it would be smarter to select a certain house as a representative instead,” Kiba sounded utterly unamused.

“Ah, you Inuzukas, always the jokesters,” Gai patted Kiba hard on the back and laughed loudly. Inuzuka just shared a glance with the rest of his teammates. “You are just like your mother.”

Shikamaru’s eyes flew wide open at the words. Did Gai think Tsume Inuzuka of all people was _funny_? The woman was as scary as hell itself. Although he had to admit, there was a kind of devilish humor to her, like there is to Kiba. He never quite realized this before. Kiba’s sister Hana was just as rash as her mother and brother. Must’ve been a family trait after all.

“Besides,” Gai’s words interrupted his train of thought, “like you said, Gryffindor only has half a team. And with the little time we have left, I’d have to select a Slytherin as representative instead.”

“No, sir!” Naruto yelled. “We can play together, can’t we, guys?” The blonde shot each of them a threatening look that almost made Shikamaru smile.

“Great! It’s settled then. Come now, you should go get breakfast before the big announcement. I should hope that you are eating regularly, no?”

“We are,” they confirmed in unison.

The walk back to the castle wasn’t as pleasant as he had wished it to be. The tension was tangible, yet it was oddly quiet. Probably because they were accompanied by a teacher. He ought to be grateful, otherwise Naruto, Kiba and Sakura would probably engage in a pointless screaming match by now.

He couldn’t say that he exactly cared all that much about being on the school’s representative team. Yes, he was the captain on the Gryffindor house team, and he should’ve felt more excited about this whole damned thing, but he couldn’t quite get there yet. There was something about this whole bloody tournament that screamed _troublesome_ to him. He couldn’t quite figure out what it was exactly, but he sure as hell wasn’t excited about having to find out.

As soon as they’d arrived at the Gryffindor common room, as predicted, the screaming had started.

“This is absolute bullshit!” Naruto was the first one to complain.

Shikamaru sat down on the armchair next to the fireplace, trying his hardest to tune out the sounds of bickering. Kiba kicked a book that was lying on the floor for whatever reason and Sakura swiftly waved her wand to catch it and put it back on the bookshelf gently, frowning at him.

“I don’t know, it’s highly logical to pick the best of each house. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t like it either. Especially not the part where they had already decided on the team before we even had the chance to prove ourselves,” she said.

“I hate that we can’t prove ourselves too! We have zero control over this.”

“Why are you even worried? You are by far the best player in the school,” Kiba said, and Shikamaru detected a hint of bitterness in his voice, which was a bit odd.

Kiba was never the jealous type, not when it came to school, not when it came to sports, and not even when it came to girls. He did his best and he accepted all consequences. As hotheaded as he was, he was still an incredible team player. Shikamaru wondered if the bitterness’ source was simply the discriminating situation that they were in, where they literally didn’t have the chance to fight for themselves. He understood how that could be the source of someone’s displeasure and it was completely justified.

Now, he himself didn’t really care if he’d make it on the team or not. Hell, he’d be happy to give his place up too. Hell, he wondered how on earth he ever managed to make captain in the first place.

A memory flashed in his thoughts; the previous team captain had graduated, and last year they had to pick a new one. He remembered thinking of suggesting Naruto for the position almost instantly. He was the best player they’d had, and he knew how to lift everyone’s spirits before the games – a true born leader. Before he could even speak, Naruto shot up to his feet and made a speech about how Shikamaru was the best tactician he’d ever met. Rational and calm. Someone who could assess the situation and judge fairly.

Shikamaru’s lip curved into a smile when remembering how both Kiba and Sakura backed Naruto’s suggestion. His friends had supported him endlessly, especially when he didn’t ask for it. It was infuriating, really. However, as troublesome as it was, he couldn’t let his friends down. Somewhere deep inside him resigned a sense of duty that Shikamaru couldn’t keep turning a blind eye to anymore.

“Shikamaru?” Naruto’s face appeared right in front of him, and he realized that he had started to doze off. “You ok?”

“Yeah, I was just… lost in thought,” he smiled softly and looked at his friends who returned the gesture, as if they had reached a silent agreement that everything would be alright.

* * *

One minute until noon. They were rushing down the stairs, almost tripping over their own feet. The announcement would be up by now. And true enough, as they’d reached the announcement hall, a piece of parchment had already been hanged up on the wall. They pushed through the crowd hastily, until they were close enough for the words to be legible.

**_Interschool Quidditch Tournament_ **

**_Representative Team of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry_ **

**_Chasers:_ **

_Ino Yamanaka (S), Kiba Inuzuka (G), Shikamaru Nara (G)_

**_Beaters:_ **

_Rock Lee (H), Sakura Haruno (G)_

**_Keeper:_ **

_Tenten (R)_

**_Seeker:_ **

_Naruto Uzumaki (G)_

**_Team Captain:_ **

_Shikamaru Nara_

“Crap,” he sighed. _Not again._


	4. Happy Birthday

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a small side note; this chapter hasn't been properly beta-read, so I apologize for any grammar/spelling errors. I will be fixing them later. Thank you for reading!
> 
> P.S. Just in case you weren't aware, a ShikaTema zine I organized is currently available for preorders (until 5. April), please consider grabbing a copy if you like this couple ♥ (you can find the link on our tumblr @/shikatemazine or twitter @/shikatemasotw)

**_Chapter Three – Happy Birthday_ **

“So unlike you to be late, Shikamaru,” Ino’s mocking voice greeted him as soon as he was close enough so that she wouldn’t have to increase the volume. “Took you long enough.”

His childhood friend had been troublesome ever since he’s known her, and he’s known her for as long as he could remember. The tall, skinny blonde smirked and greeted him with a hug, before she turned to face the trio that accompanied him. As she stepped away from him, she faced Sakura first and scanned her from head to toe before speaking.

“I’m surprised you’ve made the team, Forehead,” her voice was icy, and Shikamaru hoped that the rivalry between the two girls won’t stand in the way of them acting like a team when the time comes. A guy could dream. Oddly enough, the pink haired girl hadn’t seemed irritated in the slightest.

“I thought Quidditch was beneath you, Ino. Or did you just claim so to impress Sasuke?” Sakura fired back, “Desperate for attention?”

“Yamanakas have played Quidditch in this school for generations, and I am no different. And I see you are still jealous of me because of Sasuke, as per usual,” Ino flashed a provocative smile, and Shikamaru’s eyes caught the movement of Naruto’s hand as he grabbed their teammate by the back of her uniform to stop her.

“Ladies, now is not the time for your infatuation with that idiot, we have more pressing concerns,” Kiba cut in in between the two girls, creating somewhat of an obstacle, “can’t you just call a truce for a while?”

“Listen to your boyfriend, Sakura, for your own good,” Ino winked, and Sakura’s face turned red in fury. He looked at Kiba, assuming he’d be enjoying the ‘cat fight,’ as he so elegantly liked to call it, but he seemed just as annoyed as Sakura. Well, maybe not quite.

“Hey everyone,” a cheerful voice called out from behind Shikamaru’s back and, to his relief, just in time before chaos had gotten the chance to ensue.

Lee appeared, carrying a big wooden case, with a shy Hinata in tow, followed by Tenten and some of the Ravenclaws as well. Shikamaru noticed Naruto tensed up a little.

More students have emerged after them, all geared up for Quidditch practice. Mr. Gai had decided on backup players already. As team captain, Shikamaru was to sort all the students in two teams, so that they could play against each other for practice.

The goal, of course, being that former competitors learned how to play together. The crucial part, Shikamaru deemed, was to establish a good teamplay between the chasers. Good coordination and communication during the play is essential if they mean to win this tournament. Luckily for him, he and Kiba were on the same team for years, and could practically read each other like an open book.

Shikamaru and Ino were a bit trickier, but doable. He knew how to play _against_ her and they’ve known each other since childhood, so he was positive that with some practice they could bring up their team play to a very good level.

Ino and Kiba on the other hand, were going to be quite the challenge considering that they could barely stand each other. While Ino and Sakura had a rivalry going on, Shikamaru had always felt like they had had some sort of an unspoken respect for each other. With Kiba, it was much different.

He remembers his birthday two years ago, vividly, and how his friends gathered in Mr. Sarutobi’s empty classroom to celebrate. Kiba thought it would be funny to cut off a strand of Ino’s hair, to which she responded by stupefying him so hard that his back hit a cage with a dozen pixies, who ended up trashing the entire classroom within seconds, until Shikamaru finally managed to think of a spell to stop them. Needless to say, detention was handed out to everyone included.

After Ino joined the Slytherin team last year, she’s been butting heads with Kiba during every derby between their houses. He was actually surprised that she hasn’t fired any shots at him yet today.

The noise around him grew louder, as he realized he was completely spaced out for a brief couple of minutes. The chatter had become somewhat aggressive, and it was his job to put an end to it.

_What a drag_.

“Alright people, listen up,” his voice rose above the clamor, and everyone shifted the attention to him, “if we want to even stand a chance against other teams, we need to learn how to cooperate, so all the house rivalry will have to be put to an end, or at least a pause, got it?”

Everybody stayed silent for once, which was a relief. It seemed as though his peers respected his authority well enough. It will make things easier in the long run.

“The good thing is, we’ve been playing against each other for a long time now, and we already know each other’s strengths and weaknesses. We just have to learn how to adjust to playing as a team as opposed to being on the opposite sides. And that means relearning how to read each other’s moves in a way to assist the play, not disrupt it.”

“It sounds easy when you put it like that, but the truth is, we have very little time,” Kiba said.

“I know. And it’s much harder to learn how to play _with_ someone than it is to play against them. Which is why the key focus of our practices will be the chasers’ teamplay. Specifically, Kiba and Ino,” his eyes shifted from one to another, observing them both frown at each other.

“Fine,” Ino agreed, as he predicted. “whatever it takes to win this tournament.”

“How do you want to do this?” Kiba crossed his arms in front of his chest, still somewhat on the fence, but apparently willing to give it a shot.

“I want you and Ino playing alone against everyone here today. Three backup chasers against you, which will give them a chance to learn how to play with each other as well. I want all four beaters here coming down at the two of you. And since seekers do their own thing, you can have Naruto on your team, and Hinata on the opposite side.”

“Four beaters though, isn’t that a bit much?” Tenten asked.

“I think that’s actually a pretty solid plan. Force us to team up to survive,” Kiba said before Shikamaru had the chance to respond. He knew he’d be on board, Kiba was always in if it involved any kind of wild action. He was more concerned about Ino’s reaction. The blonde girl remained silent for a brief moment, and then her lip curved into a smile.

“I’m in.”

“Alright blondie, let’s do this shit.”

“Call me ‘blondie’ _one_ more time and I’ll rip off your ball sack.”

“Alright, alright, jeez Yamanaka,” Kiba threw his hands up in the air defensively.

Before another round of bickering could start, Lee kicked open the case. The Bludgers were shuddering loudly against the chains.

At Shikamaru’s sign, everyone mounted their brooms and flew up in position. On his right side were Kiba and Ino, with Naruto above them. To his left was a team of three chasers, four beaters above them, and Hinata as a seeker on top of the weirdly shaped pyramid. Keepers were in place in front of the hoops.

Shikamaru released the Golden Snitch, and then the Bludgers went up in the air. Finally, he tossed the Quaffle high up in the air, and the match began.

True to his assumptions, it started off awful. They had trouble reading each other’s body language which resulted in a lot of screaming during the first ten minutes of the game. They both had terrible assistance, and kept trying to do everything by themselves.

Luckily for Shikamaru, the first Bludger came into play just when he thought it was all a lost cause. Kiba was handling the Quaffle, headed straight for the middle hoop when Lee knocked the ball at him from a dead angle, and no way for Kiba to see it. But Ino did. As they had no beaters for protection, Ino lunged to the side and collided hard into him, pushing him out of the Bludger’s way.

It seemed as though violent team play was the key to understanding each other. After the almost incident that _could_ have costed them a key player, the two finally found a mutual language. Sort of.

By the end of the game, Shikamaru could honestly say that some progress was made. However, they’d still need more practice.

He had planned on going to bed early, but of course, that would be impossible. Shikamaru never cared much for his birthday, but his friends did. He wasn’t sure if he should thank them or curse them for all the fuss they made about it every year.

Whenever any of them had a birthday, a celebration was in order. And all were usually small gatherings with the closest friends. Except _this_ was no ordinary milestone. He was turning seventeen, and becoming a man of legal age. After today, all restrictions would be lifted. Not that he ever cared in particular about not being allowed to do certain things, but he was looking forward to the feeling of independency.

Naturally, Kiba made it his solemn duty to throw him an illegal party to celebrate, for which they would all most likely end up in detention. Shikamaru had expected another attempt at celebration in one of the classrooms, but even after all these years, his friends still managed to surprise him. Just as he was about to go to bed, Naruto grabbed him, tucked them both under his Invisibility cloak, and off they went, through the dark underground Hogwarts tunnels, emerging straight into the basement of The Three Broomsticks.

Shikamaru recognized all of the faces in the pub who yelled ‘surprise’ after Naruto shoved him through the door.

“Holy crap, we’re so gonna get detention until the end of the year for this,” he muttered under his breath to Naruto who was standing right next to him and responded by simply patting his back.

“Yeah, I know. Happy birthday,” the blonde grinned from ear to ear, and all he could do was shake his head slightly.

“Happy birthday, man!” Kiba approached him, carrying more beer glasses than one would think possible, and he handed one to Shikamaru, and he took it without hesitation. “And before you ask, yeah, it’s the _real_ thing,” Inuzuka gestured to the liquid.

It wouldn’t be the first time they’ve had the ‘real’ beer, but it was the first time that Shikamaru was actually _allowed_ to drink it. Somehow, it tasted different now. After his own seventeenth birthday, Kiba used to say it tasted like freedom.

“Chug it,” Sakura said.

Against his better judgement, Shikamaru fell victim to the debauchery and did as he was bid. The crowd cheered him on until he swallowed the last drop of beer, and held up the empty glass in the air.

“ _Now_ , you’re a man,” Kiba said a bit too loudly, and patted his back.

“Alright, now tell me, how the hell did you pull this party off?”

“Some things aren’t meant to be explained,” Kiba teased, “but basically, I may or may not have traded some _favors_ with the woman who owns the place, and then Naruto may or may not have made two dozen runs from here to the school, smuggling people one by one. It took us all day to sneak around and not get noticed.”

“Is this your not-so-subtle way to brag about having sex with Anko?”

“Maybe.”

He wished he could say he was surprised by the fact that a witch _that_ older than them would go to bed with someone who was barely of legal age, but Kiba had quite the talent when it came down to persuading, and not just women. For whatever reason, women did seem to fall into his arms effortlessly.

“Shikamaru,” Ino’s voice called from behind him, and she and Chouji approached them. “Happy birthday,” she exclaimed and gave him a big hug, squeezing her arms around his ribs a bit too tight for his taste. Chouji simply smiled and wished him all the best.

“I have to say, I had my doubts about this party when I heard _Inzuka_ was handling it,” she paused briefly, looking at the boy with red marks on his sharp cheeks, who just gazed at her with a winning grin on his face, “but now that I’m here, it’s not _that_ bad.”

“Please, Yamanaka, we’re just getting started here,” he said wickedly, and Shikamaru felt an odd tension rise between the two. They may have gotten better at playing together on the field, but seems as though their daily routine hasn’t changed a bit.

“I’ll be the judge of that,” she replied skeptically.

“Ya know, if you really want to help make this party a show, you could always strip, I’ll clean up the bar for ya,” Inuzuka grinned, and Shikamaru thought how this would be the day his friend dies.

Ino surprised them both as she remained oddly calm. In fact, it terrified him to see her put on a lustful expression, and step up closer to Kiba, invading his personal space. She gently placed a hand on his chest, and ran her fingers down his stomach, slowly. Shikamaru’s eyes widened in absolute shock, until he saw her violently grab Kiba’s testicles, muttering a threat under her breath that had something to do with _plucking grapes_.

Shikamaru decided that he didn’t need to witness any more of the crazy, so he slowly stepped away from the scene, making his way to the bar, behind which was Naruto.

“What was that all about?” Naruto asked, motioning to the place in the crowd Shikamaru had just escaped from.

“You know what, I’m not sure I want to know,” he accepted another glass of beer that Naruto offered him and took a good long sip.

“Hi Shikamaru,” he heard a timid voice, and turned to see Hinata. “Happy birthday.”

“Thank you, Hinata.”

“Here, this is a little gift from me and my friends,” she extended a box of chocolates with a red bowtie on it and he reached for the gift slowly. It must have been Chouji’s idea, since these chocolates were his favorite.

“You didn’t have to, but thank you, I appreciate the thought.”

“Hi Hinata!”

He turned to look at Naruto again, who was grinning widely and staring at the girl whose face suddenly turned pink.

“H-hello, Naruto,” the girl replied shyly.

“It’s nice to see you here,” the blonde continued awkwardly, and all Shikamaru could think of is that all of his friends have somehow lost the sense of self-preservation today.

“Likewise,” Hinata smiled gently, and slowly resigned herself back to the crowd.

“Dude, you’re sweating.”

“Wha–I’m not sweating!”

“Oh really? What’s with the puddles under your armpits?”

“It’s hot here, ok.”

“Kiba will essentially kill you if you go there, you know that, right? Physically, _actually_ murder you.”

“I _just_ said hi to her! I literally didn’t touch the girl,” Naruto frowned, and Shikamaru just stared back with a bored expression on his face.

“The last time you acted like that was when you had a crush on Sakura like four years ago,” he said after a beat.

“I _don’t_ have a crush on Hinata. That’s crazy. I’ve barely even talked to her.”

“Alright, alright. Suit yourself,” Shikamaru finally gave up. He knew better than to put effort into arguing about a lost cause.

“Ok, fine, maybe I do _a little_. But I’m not doing anything about it so shut up.”


	5. The Encounter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Guest teams are starting to arrive to Hogwarts. Shikamaru comes face to face with an old acquaintance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter hasn't been beta-read, so I apologize for any spelling/grammar errors. I'd love to hear your thoughts on the story ♥
> 
> Side note: Preorders for the ShikaTema zine close on the 5th April, last chance to get your copy! Check out our tumblr @/shikatemazine and twitter @/shikatemasotw for links to the shop!

**_Chapter Four – The Encounter_ **

He woke up in their dormitory around eight in the morning, after only three hours of sleep. His head felt swollen and heavy, and his ears were ringing with an irritating buzz. Opening up his eyes had been the most exhausting chore he’d had the displeasure to do.

Shikamaru’s fingers applied pressure to the side points of his forehead, and soon he realized that something was off. His hands slid back into his hair and he frowned upon realizing that it had been _braided_. God, if Ino was behind this, he ought to kill her. He had only a vague recollection of the events of his birthday.

He looked around the room, and spotted Naruto sleeping on the floor next to his bed, with one leg up on the mattress securely. Kiba’s bed was empty, which was never really a surprise at this point.

His eyelids felt too heavy and he contemplated going back to sleep for just a little bit more. Before the dreams could take him away to a far-off land, Kiba burst into the room, and announced himself loudly.

“Rise and shine, ladies,” Inuzuka stepped closer to the middle of the room, and threw an orange Shikamaru’s way, forcing him to react if he wanted to avoid getting hit in the face by the fruit.

“What the hell are you doing up so early?” Naruto mumbled as he turned from his side to his back, immediately regretting the decision upon realizing he was on the floor and not in the comfort of his bed.

“I had to send an owl to my sister,” Kiba stated so matter-of-factly that it seemed highly believable and mundane, except Shikamaru knew him all too well to know that _something_ was up. He narrowed his eyes at Kiba, trying to figure out what he had been hiding.

“Please tell me you didn’t do something stupid.”

“I didn’t.”

Shikamaru scoped the room one more time, looking for clues, until his eyes finally landed on Kiba again. Just as he was about to relax, he caught movement inside Kiba’s sweater.

“Oh, what the hell was that?” Shikamaru demanded, jumping out of bed, his eyes fixated on the lump under his friend’s garment. Kiba exhaled and reluctantly revealed a small puppy.

“I took her to the kitchen to feed her, and _then_ I sent an owl to Hana to ask if she’ll come pick her up,” Kiba explained. For a brief moment, Shikamaru was stunned, shifting his eyes from his friend to the furry little creature in his arms.

“Did you just smuggle _a_ _dog_ into school?” he asked flatly after a beat, his facial expression completely resigned.

“I did _not_ smuggle a dog into school,” Inuzuka lied.

“That’s exactly what someone who had smuggled a dog into school would say,” he added.

The puppy was black, and had the most unusual set of eyes; one brown and one blue. It was scared, but kept looking at Shikamaru, as if it was waiting for him to make a move. He stepped forward, and let the animal sniff his hand out. Puppy’s wet snoot touched his finger lightly, and then it licked him. Shikamaru smiled.

“See, she likes you,” Kiba grinned, “I put a charm on her to mute her voice when we went out, so don’t worry, nobody saw us.”

Kiba whipped out his wand, and with a swift movement removed the charm. The puppy yawned slowly, letting out a small, squeaky sound that could melt a heart of stone.

“I wish I could say this was the first time we had a stray dog in our room,” Naruto stated, walking over to join them in fawning over their new little four-legged friend.

“Hana better be picking her up soon, and you honestly need to stop doing this shit.”

“Ya know, it would be much easier to take you seriously if you weren’t grinning from ear to ear right now and playing with Lily.”

Shikamaru had only then realized that he had gotten so carried away that he was the one holding her. He would have been embarrassed, but he really wasn’t sober enough to care yet.

“I should have guessed you’d name her after a flower,” Naruto laughed.

“What do you mean?”

“He means that _every_ time you pick up a female stray animal, you name her after a flower,” Shikamaru explained as he observed Kiba frown in realization.

“Yeah. We had a Rose, a Jasmine, a Poppy…” Naruto started recollecting, and counting on his fingers.

“Alright, alright, I get it,” Kiba said and paused for a beat. “Anyway, do you guys remember why I have this bruise on my shoulder?”

Shikamaru looked at the purple colored stain Kiba revealed on his skin. He was still holding Lily in his arms and stroking her gently.

“Oh! I remember,” Naruto’s hand went shooting up in the air and Shikamaru cringed at the loud sound, staring at the blonde. He waited a bit before pointing to Kiba and continuing the explanation, “ _that_ was a _gift_ from Ino. As I recall you’ve made a very delicate remark about her ass, and she didn’t appreciate it.”

Shikamaru couldn’t help but burst out laughing. It seemed as though Kiba, as much as he apparently hated Ino, tried a bit too hard to get on her nerves. In fact, it was as if he’s made it his life’s mission to annoy her. No sane man would put _that_ much effort into wasting breath on someone he had allegedly hated. Then again, Kiba wasn’t exactly the epitome of sanity, Shikamaru argued with himself.

But, this whole hate-dynamic his two friends have had, had started to seem much less like actual hate. Hell, he was sure they’ve both actually _enjoyed_ bickering with each other.

“…and then, Sasuke and Neji showed up and demanded that Ino went with them immediately, or they would report us to the headmistress,” Naruto kept talking and Shikamaru realized that he had spaced out on an important part of the story that he had no memory of.

“Oh, I remember now, he also called Sakura a mudblood-”

“-and then she punched him in the face. That was awesome,” Naruto beamed.

“Wait, where the hell was I during all of this?” Shikamaru asked.

“I think you were hiding in the loo,” Kiba said and Naruto nodded. He was more confused than before; why would he be hiding?

“Yeah, Shiho was trying to make a move on you so you went in hiding,” the blonde followed through the clarification, and his memory started to come back.

“Speaking of her, why the _hell_ would you invite her in the first place?!”

“Oops,” they grinned viciously, and Shikamaru just shook his head. His friends were a nightmare.

They were rushing to take their seats at the Gryffindor’s long table before the feast began. The room had already been crowded; the girls were all nervous and giggly, and the boys awfully focused. Some of the guest schools’ teams have started to arrive, and would be introduced during the dinner. Needless to say, it created absolute chaos.

Shikamaru walked around the table as soon as he had entered the Great Hall, and the rest of his friends walked straight down the center aisle. As soon as they’ve reached their spot, Kiba hopped over the table and took a seat next to the place Shikamaru was going to get comfortable at. He heard Mr. Sarutobi shout a warning at Kiba for behaving like he usually does.

Before he himself sat down, he glanced over at the professor who was reprimanding Kiba, and noticed a familiar figure sitting at the teachers’ table; his own father was right there next to the headmistress. Shikamaru looked at the man who was his exact copy, give or take a couple of facial scars, a goatee and about two and a half decades.

His birthday was yesterday, and his old man had already sent him a new chess board as a gift, so he definitely wasn’t there to see _him_. Plus, Shikaku wasn’t quite the sentimental type of a father, which Shikamaru appreciated. After his dad spotted him, Shikamaru waved casually to him, and the man had responded by lifting a cup he had been drinking from and nodding.

“Is that your dad?” Sakura asked, peaking above Naruto’s head that somehow kept obstructing her field of vision.

“Yeah, it is.”

“What’s he doing here?” Naruto waved at Shikaku, and Sakura smacked him over the head with a book she carried with her, “Ow! What was that for?”

“Idiot, have some respect!”

“Shh, guys, Tsunade is making an announcement,” Kiba shushed them, and they all turned to listen.

“Good evening everyone,” the woman started loudly and the clamor in the Hall died down, “I have wonderful news for you!”

Somehow, Shikamaru doubted the news was wonderful. Not that he’d had any proof of it, besides a gut-wrenching feeling, though. Seeing his father had made him think bad things. Aurors don’t just casually drop by for dinner and drinks at Hogwarts.

“It’s my great honor to introduce to you, Shikaku Nara, the Auror. The Ministry Of Magic had sent him here to scout for talented witches and wizards that have the potential to become like him.”

The rumpus from the students had risen again in excitement, and the headmistress put her hand high up in the air to ask for silence once more.

“Mr. Nara will be a guest at our school, and will be attending some classes to observe your performance. He also plans on having tests, both written and practical, in order to properly asses your skills. Only the students in their seventh year will be considered for the Auror intern positions with the Ministry, so if this is your ambition, I suggest you try your hardest to impress him.”

“That’s awesome,” Naruto whispered in wonder, and both Kiba and Sakura seemed to think so as well. Shikamaru wasn’t sure what to make of this situation yet. It seemed weird that of all the Aurors in the bloody world, his own father was there.

“And now, without further ado, please welcome our guests from the Durmstrang Institute,” the headmistress had pointed towards the door that swung open, and suddenly all thought of Auror interns was forgotten as the students turned their full attention towards a group of people that entered the Great Hall.

They marched down the aisle with such a powerful synchronization, that left everyone in awe. The first in the column was a man who had his face half hidden behind fabric that was wrapped around his head, Shikamaru assumed this was either their headmaster or flying coach. Right behind him followed a familiar figure with sandy blonde hair and green eyes that one could never forget.

“Is that…” his mouth fell open, and he kept on staring at the girl who had marched right past them only moments ago.

“Yep, in the flesh,” Kiba nodded, staring wistfully at the tanned girl’s back.

“She looks,” he paused before he could make a fool of himself as his first instinct was to say _hot_ , but had he done that, they’d never let him forget, “…different.”

“Yeah, that’s because the last time you saw her, she sent a Bludger flying straight to your face and made you cry,” Kiba teased. Luckily, he hadn’t picked up on the tension in Shikamaru’s voice, and just continued the banter, “Your vision was compromised.”

He remembered the scene all too well. It was his first ever Interschool match during his third year in Hogwarts. They’ve played a friendly game with Durmstrang because of whatever event the school was celebrating that year, and he recalls thinking how she was the most troublesome woman he had ever met. She was loud and a show-off, even if with good reason; her Quidditch game score statistic was unmatched for years.

“Didn’t she have a nickname for you as well? Something with the word ‘girl’ in it, or was it ‘baby’?” Naruto tried to think back.

“Crybaby,” Shikamaru replied flatly, cursing himself internally for letting the embarrassing nickname slip so easily, prompting his friends to start laughing loudly. “Hey, judge me when you’ve taken a hit like that.”

 _Was she always this hot_ , he thought to himself, looking at the woman in the distance.

“Yep,” Kiba and Naruto nodded in unison, and Shikamaru was startled for a second, not really sure what had happened just now.

“You do realize you said that out loud, right?” Inuzuka asked after seeing Shikamaru’s confused facial expression.

“Of course, I’m not an idiot,” he lied, knowing full well that Kiba knew the truth. Oddly enough, Kiba only smiled, and didn’t push the subject on any further.

“Wait a minute, isn’t she like, two or three years older than us?” Naruto asked.

“Yes. I’ve heard rumors that she’s been summoned to Durmstrang as an alumni to be their coach for this tournament,” Sakura chimed in.

“Oh good, so Shikamaru doesn’t have to worry about coming face to face with a Bludger again,” Kiba flashed an evil grin and patted him on the back.

“Funny,” he said.

Before his friends had the chance to humiliate him a bit more, Tsunade had asked the students to welcome the team from Beauxbatons. Kiba was especially interested to see if there are any new ladies coming in, and he wasn’t disappointed to see that in fact, yes, there were four girls on the team.

“You are hopeless, you know that?” Sakura frowned at Kiba and shook her head in disapproval.

The evening went on quite peacefully after that. They’ve loaded up on dinner, and Kiba made sure to stuff his pockets with some meat he thought was appropriate for Lily. Naruto almost choked on his food after Sakura brought up Hinata during conversation, but luckily, Inuzuka was preoccupied elsewhere to notice.

They’d headed back to the Gryffindor common room right after dinner. Halfway through, Shikamaru realized he had forgotten his Defense Against the Dark Arts textbook at the table, and hurried back to retrieve it before someone snatched it; he had to push through the sea of students going back to the common rooms to get to the Great Hall. Upon finally reaching the door, he came face to face with her green eyes.

“Hey, Crybaby,” she grinned at him teasingly, “I see you’ve finally grown into that cloak.”

“Tsk, I see you’re still just as troublesome as you were back then.”

Shikamaru thought back to the few brief moments back in his third year when he had the first and last encountered her, up until now. She was still the same epitome of trouble, except now he was somehow taller than her and she didn’t seem as frightening as before. Well, certainly not in the same way. Back then, he just didn’t want to lose to a _girl_. She was physically stronger than he was, and not to mention too arrogant for his taste. Fifteen minutes into the game she wiped the floor with him.

Today, however, he was in awe of all her ruthless glory, no matter how troublesome. 

**Author's Note:**

> My first attempt at an AU. I hope I'll be able to do this story that I imagined justice.


End file.
